The Christmas Charm
by Raquelle Rox
Summary: This is a sequel to 'Rose Day'. If you haven't read that yet, I would recommend reading it first. It's been 10 months since the Rose Day incident, and it seems Malfoy along with the rest of Hogwarts is pretending it never happened. Hermione is beginning to believe it too and winter blues have settled. Will Draco be able to add charm to this miserable Christmas? Will he even bother?


**The Christmas Charm**

**Author's note: After all the requests I received about writing a sequel, I have been toying with this idea for quite a bit. A while back, I finally decided to put it to words. I wanted to post it on Christmas, but something came up and the story couldn't be completed in time. Sorry for the delay. Hope all of you like the sequel as much as the first one. And….Happy New Year!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own imagination. All these amazing characters are purely JK Rowling's creation.**

**Summary: **This is the sequel to 'Rose Day- A Special Valentine'. If you haven't read that yet, I would recommend reading it first as there are many references to Rose day in this story. It's been ten months since the Rose Day incident, and it seems Malfoy along with the rest of Hogwarts has forgotten it ever happened. Hermione is beginning to believe it was a dream and winter blues have settled deep into her heart. Will Draco be able to add charm to this miserable Christmas? Will he even bother to try?

* * *

"Huh," Hermione sighed contentedly as she opened her eyes in her abandoned dorm room and turned to look at her alarm clock whilst stifling a yawn. Hermione jumped a little in disbelief of the time. It was already nine o'clock, yet the sun had barely risen; there were mere rays of faded sunlight in her dorm room today despite the unobstructed half a dozen windows. For a second Hermione nearly entered a state of panic at the fleeting thought of being late for her classes before remembering that it was the Christmas holidays and classes had been cancelled. This year Hermione had been the only girl in her dorm room to be staying in school during the Christmas holidays. With Voldemort back from the dead, most parents had wanted to spend as much time with their children as possible. Ron and herself, however, had opted to stay at Hogwarts to keep Harry company and spend this merry time with him. Of course, the Weasleys had extended an invitation to Harry to spend the holidays with them. However, Dumbledore had denied Harry that right; claiming that it was too dangerous with Voldemort on the loose once more. And so, the trio had tried to make the best of a terribly lonely situation by staying at Hogwarts with Harry, keeping him company and keeping his mind off Voldemort, the Dursleys and any other gloomy thoughts.

As she rose from her bed to get ready for the day and meet Ron and Harry at the Great Hall, her gaze fell upon a red, shimmering rose sitting in a simple white vase on her bedside table. At its sight and the memories associated with it, Hermione let out a wistful sigh. Even though the rose given to her by the infamous Draco Malfoy months ago, on Valentine's Day, was one of her most cherished possessions, there were times, like today, when Hermione wished that the rose wasn't magically preserved and that it would wither and die, giving Hermione the excuse to throw it out. For even though, she sometimes, the times becoming more and more frequent, resented the rose, she had yet to persuade herself to actually dispose of it, the memory of her fluttering heart and that shadow of a kiss stopping her every time she attempted to throw it out in a fit of rage. The rose, when presented to her, had represented all that Hermione had coveted; to feel special, to feel…loved. It still did. The only difference was that ten months ago, it had represented hope. Today it represented despair.

* * *

As Hermione stood in front of the mirror, fully dressed in a thick woollen Mrs Weasley sweater covering her silk blue blouse, a black modest skirt with matching leggings and ankle length boots, taming her wild bushy hair, Hermione abandoned the task for a moment to really look at herself for a moment. She had always known that she wasn't beautiful like some other girls in Hogwarts, but she had always heartened herself with the thought that her brilliant mind more than made up for it. But now, she wasn't so sure. She was certain her mind would get her into a good job, but could her mind get her into anyone's heart without assistance from her body. Was she really that ugly that her eidetic mind could not fill the void?

Her parents had always said that an intelligent young man would one day see her for who she was; the most beautiful girl in the world. She had thought that Draco Malfoy had when he had given her the rose ten months ago. However, the next day onwards, him along with everyone else in the school had begun to pretend as if that had never happened. The only thing that had convinced Hermione that she hadn't imagined the whole thing had been the rose, still delicately resting on her bedside table.

Hermione did not know what she was expecting to see from Draco Malfoy the day after Rose Day but it certainly hadn't been hearing him mock _mud bloods_ as he stood chatting with Blaise Zabini in the corridor next to the Great Hall as breakfast was just beginning, Crabbe and Goyle by his side and Pansy Parkinson stuck on his arm like a leech, his trademark smirk in place, Slytherin colours adoring his body as he continued on about how his father had said that mud bloods were beneath _normal_ wizards. To think that she had actually been looking forward to talking to him. As she walked past him, insult was added to injury for instead of looking mortified at the realisation that Hermione had heard the atrocious words or even smug that she had, Draco…no, Malfoy had looked right past her as he headed inside the Great Hall, as if he hadn't even seen her.

* * *

With those depressing thoughts lingering in her mind, Hermione headed to the Great Hall to join her friends, her mood a stark contrast to the gauche decorations covering every wall of Hogwarts from top to bottom, the brightly lit Christmas trees at every turn and the giddy ghosts eagerly awaiting the festivities of the next day.

As she entered the Great Hall, she instantly spotted her red headed friend nose deep in scrambled eggs, porridge, sausages and various other indistinguishable food items piled high onto his plate as Ron ate as if he hadn't eaten in days. "Good morning," Hermione said as she slipped into the seat across from Ron at the Gryffindor table and received a mumbled "Goof morphingf," in return. Hermione scanned the scarcely occupied Great Hall and was surprised to find the absence of Harry. But before she could question Ron, a sneaking suspicion entered her mind which was confirmed when Ron said a moment later "Harry wasn't in the dorm room when I woke up ten minutes ago. I reckon he's in the owlery with Hedwig. Don't worry he'll be here soon enough." Without waiting for Hermione's reply, Ron dug into his remaining food with a renewed gusto.

Hermione merely nodded silently before selecting a more balanced breakfast for herself. She was pretty sure where Harry was and what he was doing, and she could bet her OWL result that Harry wasn't with Hedwig. Her suspicions were strengthened when she noticed George and Fred on the far end of the table, whispering to each other with Percy throwing them suspicious glares every few minutes from his place further down the table, out of earshot of the Weasley twins, or rather when she noticed the absence of the youngest Weasley despite her friend circle walking out of the hall at the very moment. Lots of unspoken traditions had been broken this Rose Day, such as the Malfoy Ritual but as had the silent custom between Harry and Hermione for even though Harry had seemed curious about who had given her the rose and even eyed her suspiciously upon discovering that it hadn't been Ron, he had yet to ask her after his initial inquiry. Hermione suspected it was because Harry himself had wanted to avoid questions about whom he had given his rose to. Though Hermione did not have to be a genius to know that it had been Ginny Weasley. After all, it was almost impossible to overlook the lovesick puppy looks Harry gave Ginny when passing her in the hallways or the way Ginny beamed when Harry threw her a veiled public compliment. She understood Harry's desire to hide the blossoming relationship from everyone, especially Ron. She knew Harry feared Ron's reaction. Thus, she had not said anything, not even to Harry or Ginny. But, in Hermione's opinion, it was only a matter of time before Harry's relationship status got out, after all, they couldn't be any more obvious. However, lucky for them, Ron couldn't be any more oblivious!

The subject of her thoughts chose that moment to enter the hall, cheeks flushed, glasses slightly askew and a grin plastered on his face. He silently made his way over to them, took a seat next to Ron and began to fill his plate, though not nearly to the capacity of that of Ron's. A few minutes later, in fact exactly five minutes later, according to Hermione's watch, Hermione saw Ginny slip into the hall, ever so_ inconspicuously_ and find a seat as far away from Harry as possible.

'_Urgh,' _Hermione groaned internally at Harry and Ginny's frankly pathetic attempts at hiding whatever was going on between them.

'_I wish Harry would just gather up some of his Gryffindor courage and tell Ron that he likes Ginny instead of playing this stupid forbidden love game._'

With a sick internal laugh, Hermione continued her train of thought. _'I'm one to talk,'_ she thought sarcastically.

_I can't even admit my feelings to myself, let alone anyone else. What right do I have to judge anyone else? Ginny is lucky, at least Harry admitted his feelings to her, Draco didn't even do that. Well, he did, just that one time though. Urgh! Why does Draco have to be…. coming here?!_

* * *

At that very moment, Draco Malfoy walked into the Great Hall, flanked by his goons, apparently amidst a deep conversation with Blaise. As Draco rolled his eyes at something Zabini said, his gaze met Hermione's for the briefest moment before Draco averted his eyes. If it were any other girl, she may have believed to have imagined it, but Hermione knew it had happened and if she were honest with herself, she wasn't really surprised by it. After all, it wasn't only the rose that reminded her of what had transpired on that fateful day when Draco Malfoy of all people had handed her the rose with a gentleness, she couldn't have imagined he possessed. Draco's attitude towards her had changed from that day on. It had gotten better or worse and Hermione doubted anyone but Draco and herself had noticed the change in his demeanour; he no longer glared at her when she answered a question correctly in class or earned Gryffindor points for mastering spells in praiseworthy time, instead he ignored her entirely. He seemed to be doing a lot of that these days. If their paths ever accidentally crossed, Draco would walk right past her without sparing her a glance, neither of loathing nor of longing. Hermione would still catch Draco bad mouthing muggleborns in general, but she had yet to overhear one foul word about herself in particular escape the blonde's mouth.

* * *

As the day progressed, Hermione's mood had yet to change, though thankfully either her friends didn't notice or just chose not to question it. Even though, Hermione managed to pay adequate attention to her surroundings, she found, as she sat with her friends for lunch, that she could not remember what she had done so far in the day. She didn't know why but she couldn't stop thinking about Draco Malfoy today. She supposed that no classes and barely any homework may have something to do with it or the festive mood of basically everyone in Hogwarts may have caused her to focus on her despondent mood even more so than usual. One would think that she would get over it after suffering for ten whole months, but it seemed to Hermione that with each passing day, her heart shattered a little bit more. As she discreetly glanced at Draco at the Slytherin table, her heart jolted with a pang of envy as he absentmindedly twirled a lock of Pansy's hair with his finger whilst engaging in a conversation with Zabini. Her feelings for Draco had been foolish before, now they were just frustrating.

'_Snap out of it, Hermione. The brat was probably pranking you that day. He wants nothing to do with you, he made that abundantly clear. So, you should want nothing to do with him,'_ Hermione mentally scolded herself as she forced herself to escape her depressing thoughts about Dra... Malfoy and focus on whatever Ron was prattling on about. With a small shock, Hermione realised Ron was talking about Christmas…tomorrow…. Today was Christmas Eve!

_How could I have forgotten?!_

_That's it. From now on, no more thoughts of Drac … uhm …Malfoy. I am going to enjoy my Christmas with my true friends._

However, that was easier said than done. An hour after lunch, Harry made an excuse about leftover homework to catch up on and left, though Hermione was pretty certain how Harry intended to spend his evening and she knew it wouldn't be under the weight of books but might be under the mistletoe. Hermione smiled slightly at the thought. Despite her own failed whatever she had had with Malfoy, she honestly felt happy at Harry's happiness. Ron had then busied himself with admiring the twins' latest inventions and begging for a few free samples. Getting bored quickly for Hermione did not share Ron's interest in puking pastels or Ton Tongue toffees, Hermione soon found herself the only person in the library until Madam Pince chased her off at close to midnight.

As Hermione walked across the corridors, heading for Gryffindor Tower with the intention of curling up with a good book until sleep came to her, there was a chill down her spine as she suddenly felt as if someone was watching her. Immediately alert with no stray thought distracting her, Hermione picked up her pace, wand clutched firmly in her right hand and strained her ears to hear footsteps but upon hearing none for the next five minutes as she continued on her path, her heart rate slowed and her grip on her wand loosened just slightly. As she turned a corner, very close to the tower now and feeling slightly silly for her exaggerated reaction moments before, an arm suddenly snaked around her own while another clamped her mouth shut and before she could react, she was pulled into a deserted corridor.

* * *

She was released as quickly as she was restrained by her mysterious captor. As soon as he let go of her arm, she reached around and brought her wand out in record time, her wand ready and a spell on her lips. However, the spell died on her lips as the moonlight entering the otherwise deserted hallway illuminated the most mesmerising pair of silver eyes she had ever seen. She would recognise those eyes anywhere.

"Draco?" Hermione whispered uncertainly.

"Hi, Hermione," Draco's casual reply lacked the sneer and air of smugness most people associated with the name Malfoy. In fact, it sounded fairly similar to the tone Draco had used when giving her the rose.

For a moment Hermione was shocked speechless. This was the same Malfoy that had been resolutely ignoring her for the better part of ten months. For just a fleeting moment, she had a vivid flashback of the day Draco had given her the rose; the fluttering heartbeat as his lips had slid across her cheek, the shy smile that had adorned her face for the rest of the day, the content mood that she had been in afterwards. _Snap out of Hermione! This may be the forst guy to give you the red magical rose but this is also the same person that ridiculed and mocked you before spontaneously presenting you with the rose and then proceeded to ignore you afterwards._

With that thought in her mind, Hermione forced her facial features to morph into an expression of severe annoyance and deep hatred. With a death glare aimed at Malfoy, Hermione coldly spat "What do you want ferret? I don't know if you are aware but manhandling a fellow classmate is considered assault and I ought to have you arres…" the rest of Hermione's words died on her lips as Draco interrupted her. But instead of snarling back at her or even mumbling out an awkward apology, Draco merrily chirped "Merry almost Christmas or should I say Happy Christmas Eve!"

Hermione was once again shocked speechless by Draco Malfoy. Just as Hermione was about to conclude that Draco had either been drinking or had been drugged, judging by his cheerful response to her cold hearted words, his flushed cheeks and the lopsided grin plastered on his face that surprisingly made him look more….good looking than Hermione had expected, Draco spoke once more, seemingly sobering after a lack of response to his merry greeting.

"I was wondering if we could talk. I know I have a lot of explaining to do." The words were spoken softly, and Hermione could tell they were genuine and just like that all the doubts and scepticism tainting her heart vanished as if the pain of the last ten months had never existed. Hermione hated the vulnerability she showed then, but it couldn't be helped. She numbly nodded her head and Draco flashed her a smile she rarely ever saw on his face. He then gently took hold of her right hand and Hermione could have sworn that her heart skipped a beat and he began to lead her down the deserted hallway, further and further away from the solace of Gryffindor tower.

* * *

For the first five minutes of following Draco around the castle in the middle of the night, Hermione had felt nothing but a warm glow in her heart, the reason for which she could not determine. However, once her wits were about her once more, a terrible thought entered her mind; What if Draco was leading her to a trap, a humiliating prank awaiting her on the other end? What if he had just been playing with her feelings before and intended to do the same again? What if Malfoy was just as vindictive and sadistic as she had presumed upon their first meeting back in first year when he had thrown Neville's Remembrall?

However, despite more and more disturbing thoughts plaguing her the longer she blindly followed Draco down more and more unfamiliar hallways, something in her heart stopped her from protesting. Some small part of her blindly trusted Draco and Hermione decided to give him the benefit of the doubt, so she could, at the very least, put an end to the emotional turmoil she had subjected herself to for the last ten months and give herself the answer to the one question no amount of deductive reasoning and logical evaluation could '_Does he like me or not?'_

Meanwhile Draco had not said one word to her ever since he had asked to speak with her. A subtle glance to her watch told Hermione that it was ten to midnight. She really ought to be in bed by now. Just as she was about to tell Draco that he could say whatever he wanted to now or leave it to a reasonable hour tomorrow, he suddenly came to a halt and Hermione barely stopped herself from slamming into his back. So lost was she in her thoughts that she had not even realised Draco had led her up an unfamiliar flight of stairs and she now stood before a door she had never seen in Hogwarts before. The door that stood before her was a simple wooden door that seemed as if it had been painted silver recently, an expensive wreath hung at its centre and the doorknob was in the shape of a blunt snowflake. The door didn't look like any door she had seen in Hogwarts before. As Draco stood to the side and gestured for her to precede him into the anonymous room that lay beyond, her suspicious feelings of foul play were overpowered by a strange giddiness, similar to what she had felt as Draco had placed the rose behind her ear.

_Well, I came this far, didn't I? it only makes sense to follow this thing through!_

With that thought in mind, Hermione took a deep breath, steadied her trembling hands and reached for the door beyond which laid Hermione's fate of love or abject humiliation.

"Aah!"

* * *

As Hermione opened the door, half expecting to be pelted with stink bombs and bulbotuber pus, she heard a distinctive pop sound somewhere above her head and couldn't help but let out a shriek. However, instead of being bombarded by some stinky substance, sparkling snowflake-shaped confetti rained down on her.

Once recovering from the shock turned surprise, Hermione glanced around the room only to realise with a start that it was not a room at all. Instead, she stood on a snow-covered roof, a full moon above her, the natural light of glimmering stars aided by the glittering enchanted lights illuminating the entire length of the roof. Despite the cold season and the presence of snow, the roof seemed to be shielded from the falling snow and had been spelled to remain pleasantly warm. An enormous Christmas tree stood on each of the four edges of the roof, each Christmas tree decorated expertly with expensive ornaments, unlike ordinary Hogwarts Christmas trees which are generally cluttered with loud décor and gauche ornaments. The entire roof was breath taking but what really captured Hermione's attention was the picnic blanket placed on the centre of the marble floor, surrounded by tons of throw pillows, an enchanted chandelier floating above the whole scene. Hermione couldn't help the gasp of awe and genuine joyful surprise that escaped her lips as she recalled a conversation that she had had with Harry a little before their second Christmas in Hogwarts whilst Ron grumbled about some professor or the other.

"_Oh, I love Christmas Harry! Everything about it…. well, except for the chilly weather. I don't really care much for winter, though I do occasionally enjoy snowfall, as long as I don't get wet."_

"_I love every season except summer."_

_Hermione winced in sympathy before changing the topic to spare Harry the unwanted pity at his slip of tongue. "You know, the only thing I love more than Christmas is picnics. Oh, how I wish you could combine the two; a Christmas Picnic! Can you imagine?"_

Now that Hermione thought about it, she could vaguely recall Draco Malfoy lurking in the hallway whilst she was deeply immersed in her conversation with Harry. At that point, she had barely spared him a glance and had just assumed that he was waiting for Zabini or evading from Pansy. She could have never imagined that he had heard that conversation or if he had, that he would pay any heed to it. She couldn't have fathomed that Draco Malfoy, the cold, heartless Malfoy could remember such a silly wish, much less make it come true.

* * *

After taking a good look around the breath-taking view, Hermione's eyes finally landed on Draco, standing in the doorway, an expression of thinly veiled nervousness on his face as he stared at her. For a moment, Hermione was dumb founded; it seemed as if Draco was expecting something from her but what could it be? _And why would he look so nerv…. oh, he isn't? Is he? Could it be? Could it be that the heartthrob Malfoy who girls fainted in front of on a regular basis was sweating from my apparent lack of reaction?_

Just as soon as the thought occurred to her, she immediately pushed it down and mentally scolded herself. Draco had obviously put a lot of thought and effort into this wonderful gesture and it would be very ungrateful to mock him, even in her own mind. It was at that moment that the gravity of the whole situation hit Hermione and suddenly her heart was lighter, the burden that had rested on it for the last ten months had been lifted. It hadn't been a prank, it hadn't been a trick, and the worry that she was most glad to be rid of; listening to her heart and following Draco Malfoy hadn't been a mistake!

Just as Hermione turned towards Draco and opened her mouth to thank him for the wonderful gesture, Draco suddenly straightened his stance and got a determined glint in his eye. He then purposely made eye contact with Hermione. The sudden change in attitude frightened Hermione, though she hated to admit it. Before she could take a step back, intimidated, Malfoy took a step forward and in a single motion, he pulled a small crimson box with a golden ribbon from his winter coat's inner pocket with his left hand whilst his right hand gently grabbed onto Hermione's wrist, ignoring her surprised gasp. He then silently placed the box in Hermione's outstretched hand and then let the captive wrist go. Hermione continued to stare blankly at Malfoy for a few moments until he gave her a small smile and motioned towards the box clasped in her hand.

At that, Hermione turned her attention to the box, all the while blushing in embarrassment at how Malfoy had caught her staring at him, mouth agape, looking like a fool. With those mortifying thoughts in mind, Hermione fumbled a bit with the ribbon, therefore, increasing her humiliation before finally managing to untie the bow and open the crimson box.

As she opened the crimson box, Hermione couldn't help the gasp that escaped her wide-open mouth as a necklace lay in the box. Not just any necklace but a silver chain with a a pendant of two silver snakes in the shape of the heart and at the centre of the piece lay an emerald that filled the heart quite nicely. Any other Gryffindor girl may have found the necklace unappealing or downright insulting as it clearly looked as if it belonged to a Slytherin. But all Hermione say was the heart, Draco's heart. The logical part of Hermione also didn't fail to notice that the box had been comprised entirely of Gryffindor colours. Before Hermione could even formulate a response, Draco gently took the necklace from Hermione's hands which had been repeatedly tracing it for the better part of a minute. He then moved behind Hermione, brushed her hair, not frustratedly, as she may have expected him to but with a gentleness she had only once before seen in Draco Malfoy, and clasped the necklace around her neck. As he retreated, he placed a shadow of a kiss at the back of her neck, sending a pleasant tingling sensation down Hermione's spine.

Draco then silently held out his hand and Hermione silently accepted it. With identical grins plastered on both their faces, Draco led her to the picnic blanket where they both settled down, hands tightly clasped, admiring the stars above. As they continued to are at the stars in comfortable silence, Hermione felt all the tension of the last ten months slip away and as she surreptitiously glanced at Draco, his relaxed posture and genuine smile assured her that he felt the same way.

* * *

The couple remained that way for an undefinable amount of time before Draco broke the silence.

"I was worried you would think that the necklace looks as though it belongs to a Slytherin but I'm glad you know better; you now belong to this Slytherin," the sentence was whispered with a mesmerising softness and despite the confidence the words seemed to portray, the tone was tinged with doubt and came out sounding more like a question rather than a proclamation. But Hermione supposed that was what it really was, a question. Draco wasn't just giving her his affections but wanted to know if she'd be a willing recipient. Yesterday, Hermione would have doubted if she could ever forgive Malfoy for playing with her heart; bullying her, giving her a rose and then proceeding to ignore her resolutely. Yesterday, if someone had told her that Draco Malfoy liked her, she would have scoffed at the person whilst internally plaguing herself with doubt and scepticism. But today, she was sure, not only of Draco's feelings towards her but of her feelings towards him; she didn't like him…. She loved him.

And so, she leaned towards Draco, he turned towards her and their lips met. Just then, Hermione heard the chimes of midnight. It was now Christmas. And Hermione thought, her hands finding their way to Draco's hair whilst his hand cupped her cheek, _what a merry Christmas it is!_

* * *

Author's End Note: Ta da! Let me know what you think in your reviews. I look forward to your feedback and constructive criticism.

Should there be another sequel? I was thinking about writing one from Draco's perspective; what he was thinking when he gave her the rose, why he's been ignoring her and what he intends on doing next. How does that sound?

And once again, Happy New Year!


End file.
